The Association of Gold Businesses in Vietnam is seeking the permission from the State Bank of Vietnam to export gold to help balance the domestic supply and demand and gain foreign currencies from the trade, VietnamNet reported.
Nguyen Thanh Long General Director of Saigon Jewelry Holding Company (SJC) said that gold exports will help maintain the balance of the supply and demand and generate foreign currencies in the short-term.
The association and gold businesses firstly proposed the central bank for gold exports in 2005, however, so far no final feedback from the central bank has been made.
Vietnam’s gold demand has been growing rapidly in the three recent years, according to the World Gold Council. The country’s average gold demand estimated at over 70 tons a year and in 2006 alone it hit 86 tons, up 41 per cent on year.
This year, Vietnam will need about 75-80 tons of gold, WGC said.
With such the growing consumption, if not allowed to export, gold businesses in Vietnam will face great challenges because moneys used to import gold becomes dead. Moreover, Vietnam has to spend hundreds of US dollars importing gold.
“If an appropriate export mechanism is formed, the domestic gold reserve will easily be converted into foreign currencies, giving a boost to the domestic gold market,” Long said.
SJC is now taking the lead on the domestic gold market in terms of sale and market-share. Last year, SJC gained total revenue of VND16 trillion (or US$1 billion), representing 90 per cent of the domestic market.
The General Customs Department said that SJC is among ten largest gold businesses with export revenues. Vietnam was estimated to have imported over 64 tons of gold in the first half of this year.
According to WGC, the world’s gold demand was estimated to hit 977 tons in the first quarter of this year, up 26 per cent on year whilst gold jewelry consumption rose 19.5 per cent to 688 tons. (VietnamNet,
www.vietrade.gov.vn)
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